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Being is living. What we truly are has been there for eternity. Some may know "that," with a label: A soul, a spirit, purusha; etc.

The experience of that which we are is all that matters, for that is all that we could ever know. The rest are perceptions.Feelings are the expression of that being.

When activities are performed in that awareness of that "inner being," then our activities are "in-tune" with the "outer" spirit of life.

Some call that "Drama," others call it "Tao," others call it "Life."

Therefore, there is a universal consciousness, which brings unity to everything there is, everything that happens. Nothing exists in isolation.

When the perception of that unity is lost, then the "mirage," the "illusion" of separation exists. When we separate, we build individuality. When that individuality overtakes our personality; it becomes known as ego.

Suffering then is a consequence of that separation from the totality of life.

Ego manifests its power through thoughts and emotions.Thoughts usually become our perception of being separated which will manifest into actions and further thoughts. This repetitive cycle is what is known as "sanskara" or predisposition. An ego performing actions, will be actions with ego.

When a thought colors the original feelings of the "inner being," they become emotions. Those emotions express themselves through the body: a disease, a sensation, a pain in the heart, upset stomach; etc. Those disturbances we name as : fear, love, hate, etc. When we express emotions, the body will experience the consequence of it.Emotions are dualistic. A high elation is followed by a low depression. Their intensity is the same but in opposite directions.

The seed then is a thought. That thought is one of separation between "you and me." That is the importance of recognizing thoughts.

Therefore, the "cure" for this "disease" of separation, is to go back to the original nature of Oneness. That means that our consciousness needs to be in the awareness of what is "true."

This has been called "witnessing," detached observer, trustee, presence, careful awareness, etc. Different names for the same thing.

When that "witnessing" comes with feelings originating in the self; it has been known as "yoga(communion)."

Therefore, the cure of separation and suffering is to remember that oneness. That means to experience it constantly.

This sense of oneness, has been named as experiencing God for some, or to be in bliss for others; note that the experience of being with someone like God or by itself, are both accurate as long as there is the sense of unity, communion. That makes the experience of spirituality complete. The descriptive words are not as important as the experience itself. The proof of that spiritual experience is in our activities. We do what we are.

Let us say that John is a challenging employee. John does not care about his supervisor's role. He will challenge his supervisor continuously. Roy supervises John and Anne supervises Roy. That is the "chain of command."

Before Roy was hired, Anne supervised John. Anne believes that John is necessary in the organization, even though John continually gets in trouble with other employees due to his "know it all" attitude.John is very knowledgeable in what he does and despises "slow people." John has a big ego.

John manipulated his work schedule as he wished. He wanted Roy, his supervisor; to sign for it. Roy refused on the grounds that John never asked for permission to change his regular schedule.

John was upset. He mentioned that he has been always a tireless employee in the organization, willing to go the "extra mile."John complained to Anne about this.

Anne was a caring woman, who believed in John at all costs. John has saved "her skin" in many occasions due to his know-how.

Anne met with Roy about this incident. At the end it was Anne, the one making the final decision.

In the rational world; John didn't have any valid ground on his posture. However, in the "real world," we have Anne's emotions which are coloring her decision. Anne does nto want to cause issues on her "star employee," but at the same time; she wants for Roy to feel good.

Roy had some "choices."1) He could try to enforce his position (ego) over John. By asking Anne to fully comply with his refusal to sign his time sheet. By doing so, Anne's emotions will appear and defend his "star employee."2) Roy could just explain his position and become part of the "movie;" that is accepting whatever Anne decides to do. Many could take this as lack of " aggressiveness" from Roy; but in the "movie of life," we know that it all depends on how important this episode is for Roy. That "importance"becomes an expectation. That is a desire to enforce his supervisory position over John.

Many times life will offer us the same episode. As long as there is separation between "me" and "you" at any thought level; we will have a desire. If that desire is fulfilled or not; it will lead into further desires to strengthen the separation. That is how ego strengthens itself.

Roy could be totally "unshakable" if he just becomes a witness; that is a detached observer with "unlimited disinterest" on the outcome. Anne's decision will not affect him as long as Roy's ego is not around. Roy still will obtain a paycheck and the law of karma will do the needful. In which way?

If Anne decides to agree with John; then John will simply "bypass" Roy at all times.John will keep pushing his way until Anne will not be able to take it anymore. Roy just needs to "get out" from being in between.

As long as Roy lets everything unfold, without having his ego included in this; things will flow according to the spiritual laws. This is known as being "empty," a "trustee."

However, that "emptiness," can only be "true," if it comes from the experience of the self. That is continuous remembrance of our eternal quality. That remembrance is experiential. Without this experience, it will be just "acting." When we "act" we are not "original," and the consequence of that is an emotion building up in the self. We can stop emotions from being shown at a particular time; but that emotion will be waiting there to "explode" at a later time. That is known as a "sanskara" emerging; but note that the origin was a repressed emotion.

We cannot stop the flow of energy but just redirect it. Transform it. What we produce, will come back to us.

Rest does not come with sleeping, it comes with waking. When we are enlightened we realise that real rest is possible only when we become free of illusion and we no longer struggle against life. Illusion is the idea that people should be, and do, what we want them to. The truth is, all is as it should be, despite appearances or our perceptions of others to the contrary.

The one who teaches others never makes time his teacher. When the situation demands or forces us to change, we can usually bring about a change. But rarely do we find ourselves changing before time and being ready for the situations that are to come. So, we face a lot of difficulty during the time we are facing a problem. We need to have the simple aim to keep learning from everything that happens. With this aim we will be able to learn and be ready even before time forces us to change. Then we will be able to give the right direction to others, too, at the right time.

Practical Positive Response Training To The Mind (cont.)

Yesterday we had explained the process of restoring positivity in the mind when faced with a negative situation, where the most common response is a negative one but the mind can be trained to respond in a different way, in a positive way. Today we explain this process with an example.

e.g. You have just had a major argument with your spouse and have lost your temper. At that time, not only your mind but your physical body also feels uncomfortable - it is in a state of complete stress. You feel your blood pressure has suddenly shot up, your heart is beating fast, you feel uncomfortable in the stomach, your hands are shaking, your face and eyes are red. On top of that, you also feel sad. You have behaved like this many times before and you know the results of responding in this way. The relationship has been scarred and you have worsened a situation. This could have been avoided. There is sorrow, guilt, low self esteem and hopelessness over your loss of control. Also, there is a fear regarding your future, not necessarily a long term one, because things will get sorted out sooner or later, but a short term uncertainty does exist, especially regarding what your spouse's response will be in the next few hours or days. In this state of mental and physical helplessness or desperation, anger may come again either projected towards yourself or towards your partner, which will be followed by the same effects, worsening your state further. In this moment of lack of spiritual wisdom, you remind yourself of the simple wisdom that you are in fact a soul. Even while you are still caught up in the turmoil of the negative situation, using your intellect, you consciously emerge inside yourself, your true awareness of being a sparkling point of peaceful light situated just above the eyes, at the center of the forehead. You not only become aware but you also use the intellect to visualize your true, peaceful, spiritual and star-like form clearly. In that moment, you are able to tap into the reservoir of peace that is present deep inside your being. You calm your mind by holding on to this awareness for a few minutes. You feel - you know - that you are peace. As this experience grows, it has a soothing effect on your whole physical system. Gradually, stability and peace are restored to your body as well as your mind.

Soul Sustenance

The Power To Tolerate (cont.)

For most human beings today, if someone insults them, they'll immediately become angry or upset in return, so nothing gets resolved. Those with a good character may be able to smile for a while, responding with patience, but repeated assaults will tire them down until the point come where they will react.

If, however, through my meditation, I am receiving unlimited power from the Supreme, my heart will remain open and I won't count how many times the other person has insulted me. This may sound like an impossible thing to do. Meditation, however, makes the impossible possible. Experienced meditators, who have developed a very deep, personal relationship with the Supreme, and keep the Supreme as their constant companion, display just such a power. It's immensely worthwhile for all of us to move towards that goal.

True tolerance is made possible by openness and acceptance. It doesn't mean clenching my teeth and carrying on, come what may. Repression or suppression of my feelings can cause me all sorts of internal damage, and end in an explosion and damage others too.

(To be continued tomorrow …..)

Message for the day

The habit of thinking positive finishes negative.

Expression: Just as it has become a habit of thinking negative, a positive habit when created will naturally bring about a change. A little practice and attention to form a habit of thinking positive will reveal its result of creating an influence of positivity. The situations will not change on their own, but the habit that has been formed will bring about a change in the response and will change the situation too.

Experience: Usually it becomes very difficult or sometimes impossible for me to think positive in difficult situations. At that time, although I want to, the response that emerges from within is based on the habit that is formed previously. So when I make the habit of constantly and consciously thinking positive, I then become free from the struggle of having to change my mind to positive in difficult situations.

Taklamakan is one of the largest sandy deserts in the world, ranking 15th in size in a ranking of the world's largest non-polar deserts. It covers an area of 270,000 km2 (100,000 sq mi) of the Tarim Basin, 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) long and 400 kilometres (250 mi) wide. It is crossed at its northern and at its southern edges by two branches of the Silk Road as travelers sought to avoid the arid wasteland.

In 2008, China's biggest desert experienced its biggest snowfall and lowest temperature after 11 consecutive days of snow. Snow is rare in the desert that covered 337,600 square kilometers, never before had the whole desert been covered.

2. LenÃ§Ã³is Maranhenses (Brazil): a â€˜desert' with lagoons

It seems incredible, but in a country that keeps around 30% of the fresh water and shelters the largest rain forest in the world, we can find a â€œdesertâ€. Located in the State of MaranhÃ£o, on the north shore of Brazil, the LenÃ§Ã³is Maranhenses National Park is an area of about 300 square kilometers (155,000 ha) of blinding white dunes and deep blue lagoons, forming one of the most beautiful and unique places in the world. The dunes invade the continent over 50km (31 miles) from the cost, creating a landscape that reminds a white bed sheet, when seen from above.

But you may ask: -Lagoons?? You told me it was a desertâ€¦ Yes, what defers this region from a desert is the amount of rain that drops over the dunes, creating ponds of crystal clear water on the depression between dunes. Despite its desert-like appearance, LenÃ§Ã³is Maranhenses records an annual rainfall of 1,600mm (i.e. 62.9 inches), 300 times more than in the Sahara. During the period of drought, the lagoons evaporate and become completely dried. After the rainy season, the lagoons are home of many species of fish, turtles and clams. The mystery in this story lies in the fact that when the lagoons fill up, life comes back, as if they had never left the place. One of the hypotheses to explain the phenomenon is that the eggs of the fish and crabs are maintained alive in the sand, exploding when rain comes back.

3. Salar de Uyuni (Bolivia): the world's largest salt desert

The Salar is one of the iconic images of Bolivia, a massive salt desert in the middle of the Altiplano. It is an expansive, virtually flat desert that reflects the sun in such a way as to create a mirror effect with the sky. There are several lakes in the desert with strange colours from the mineral deposits in the region.

Some 40,000 years ago, the area was part of Lake Minchin, a giant prehistoric lake. When the lake dried, it left behind two modern lakes, PoopÃ³ Lake and Uru Uru Lake, and two major salt deserts, Salar de Coipasa and the larger Uyuni. Uyuni is roughly 25 times the size of the Bonneville Salt Flats in the United States. It is estimated to contain 10 billion tons of salt, from which less than 25,000 tons is extracted annually.

4. Farafra (Egypt): the white desert

A main geographic attraction of Farafra is its White Desert (known as 'Sahara el Beyda,' with the word 'sahara' meaning a desert). The White Desert of Egypt is located 45 km (30 miles) north of Farafra. The desert has a white, cream color (it is truly white, in clear contrast with the yellow deserts elsewhere) and has massive chalk rock formations that have been created as a result of occasional sandstorms in the area.

5. Atacama (Chile): the flourished desert

The Atacama Desert occupies the largest amount of the Chilean territory located north of the 29th parallel. The area located on the coast between Arica and Antofagasta appears in the Guinness Book of World Records as the driest place in the world. Nevertheless, to the south of the Tropic of Capricorn, the desert becomes kinder towards living beings. The coastal mists, "camanchacas", are more abundant south of Antofagasta and bring the humidity necessary for the maintenance of the coastal scenic vegetation. Many plants survive mainly because of the "camanchaca", and the harsh savings of water, in normal dry years, that causes them to delay important functions such as growth, to favor survival and reproduction.

6. Namib (Namibia): the only desert with elephants

South of Africa lies the Namib desert. which is less vast than the Sahara but just as impressive. It forms part of the Namib-Naukluft National Park with neighbouring Angola. The Sossusvlei sand dunes are the highest in the world, some towering at 300m high and if you are lucky enough, you can stumble across desert elephants-the Namib is the only desert in the world to have elephants. Apparently the oldest desert in the world, myriad species of plants and animals can only be found here. The Namib has fascinated geologists for years but it remains very little understood to this day. Off the coast, strong southerly winds with fogs and strong currents cause sailors to lose their way; the north coast has been named 'Skeleton Coast' due to the amount of shipwrecks found there, some of which can be found as much as 50m inland, as the desert slowly takes over the ocean as it moves westwards.

7. Simpson Desert (Australia): the red sand desert

Australia is home to four large deserts, popularized by Mad Max: Sturt's Stoney Desert, Tanami Desert, the Great Victoria Desert and the Simpson Desert, which is also known as 'The Big Red' due to the presence of dunes of red sand. The Simpson Desert is an erg which contains the world's longest parallel sand dunes. These north-south oriented dunes are static, held in position by vegetation. They vary in height from 3 metres in the west to around 30 metres on the eastern side. The most famous dune, Nappanerica, or, more popularly, Big Red (named by Simpson Desert traveller Dennis Bartell), is 40 metres in height.

8. The Black Desert (Egypt): the desert with black stones

Located 100km northeast of the White desert, the Black Desert is a region of volcano-shaped mountains with large quantities of small black stones. The stones lie out across the orange-brown ground, so that it is not quite as black as many people may hope for. Especially after visiting the White Desert, which has formations that are really white, many will imagine a desert as dramatic as this. Climbing one of the many soft peeks, the view from the top is really nice, with similar peeks continuing on into the haze. The Black Desert is uninhabited.

9. Antarctica: world's driest and wettest desert

Antarctica is a land of extremes. It's not inhabited year round by humans because it's simply too freezing cold. In 1983 scientists recorded extreme cold temperatures as low as -129 Fahrenheit. It's also the wettest place on Earth, but simultaneously the driest. The reason it's the â€œwettestâ€ is not because of rainfall; since Antarctica is covered by 98% ice, it's technically very wet. However since it's also the aforementioned coldest place in the world, it gets very little precipitation â€" less than 2 inches a year. Which makes Antarctica a desert. A brutally cold ice desert with a massive trench full of even moreâ€¦ice. Three for the price of one!

10. Sahara (North Africa): world's largest desert

The Sahara, with a size of 8.6 million kmÂ², is the world's largest desert, covering large parts of North Africa. Around 4 million people live there. Its maximum length is 4,800 km, running from west to east, and up to 1,200 km from north to south. Sahara covers most of Mauritania, Western Sahara, Algeria, Libya, Egypt, Sudan, Chad, Niger and Mali, and touches Morocco and Tunisia.

Sahara is very dry but there is an annual rainfall in most regions, although just a few dozen millimetres

US scientists have designed a next-gen flying car, Terrafugia TF-X, which is capable of taking off vertically and flying completely on its own. It could be on the roads within a decade. It won't require a pilot's license to operate. The Terrafugia TF-X flying car can take off vertically and has a flying range of 805 km.